


A Battle

by Baekhanded



Series: AFTG Bingo 2018 [1]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Blood, Confusion, Danger, Distress, Fear, Friendship, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mystery, Non-Consensual Drug Use, aftg bingo, feathers - Freeform, plz hitch a ride with me on this, this sounds bad but its really not, unconventional forming friendship, yet - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-01
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-08-06 09:45:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16385648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baekhanded/pseuds/Baekhanded
Summary: A Battle Royale auSome Foxes get a call from Andrew.it isn't Andrew.





	1. A Phone Call that Changed Everything

**Author's Note:**

> so lets see what I can mark off the Bingo card (ive taken on 4 for this)
> 
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything."  
> Renison: /  
> Andreil: /  
> Jerejean: /

 

Neil wasn’t one for answering his phone. Or carrying it around. At all. People know by now that if you wanted to get into contact with him, you got through to Matt. Not even text messages.

 

Even odder, was the caller id. The day they received the call changed everything. Maybe it was for the better.

 

As it was, they were sitting together, Neil was trying to make sense of his notes while Matt chattered on about something or other, when suddenly his phone started to buzz.

 

This wasn’t new. Matt was a popular guy. He didn’t always answer his texts immediately, but he never left them for long. Today was no exception, but it seemed he was requiered a lot more immediately than he was giving them credit for. The simple rhythm of buzzes changed to a steady thrum.

 

A phone call.

 

Both paused wat they were doing- Neil structuring a sentence and Matt mid-sentence.

 

“Andrew?” Matt said curiously and looked to Neil. Neil just shrugged but watched his friend as he picked up the phone and pressed the green button.

 

He held the phone to his ear and listened. His brows furrowed, “What? I can’t hear you….Dude you barely sound like yourself. What? Where? Huh? Wi-who? Oh! With Neil! Yeah I am, why? …..Okay….yeah I can, hey wha- Andrew! Andrew!”

 

Neil’s heart was racing in his chest, what was going on?

 

Matt hung up his phone and stared at it, the picture of confusion.

 

“What was that? Is he alright?” Neil’s mouth was a desert.

 

“He said he wanted us to join him. Or well you and Renee. He said ‘the others’ could tag along too….where did he even go? He said there was a bus leaving soon. That he’d send directions.”

 

That...did sound like something he’d do, but Neil still frowned, “Get in touch with Renee...and lets get on this bus.”

 

Matt nodded. He seemed to agree, immediately calling Renee, who also agreed. It wasn’t long before their small group was waiting at a derelict bus stop. Also not unlike Andrew. But usually he would just pick them up. Neil and Renee at least…

 

“What’s...going on?” Allison asked first. No one could really answer. Neil didn’t know and Matt sure as hell didn’t.

 

“We’ll just have to wait and find out, Andrew or not we need to do this,” and if that wasn’t classic Cryptic Renee, Neil didn’t know what was.

 

“What do you mean Andrew or no-” Matt was cut off as a very old, very dull bus almost drove them over as it pulled to a stop. The hinges screeched as the doors came open.

 

Allison and Matt were ready to bolt, but one look from Renee and they piled in.

 

Renee.

 

Neil.

 

Matt.

 

Allison.

 

They were the only ones on the bus. They sat squished into two seats in the middle. Their voices soft as they spoke.

 

It was too late they all realized they hadn’t gotten a look at their driver. That he didn’t seem to have a face at all. That the empty bus was old from use, and that a powder covered the seats and floated through the air as they moved around.

 

It was too late they realized that it really wasn’t Andrew on the phone, but that they would be seeing him anyways.

 


	2. Alone and Aloof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew wakes somewhere that he wasn't before, and he isn't happy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bingo hits up to this point
> 
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything."   
> Renison: /  
> Andreil: / "What the fuck?"/Kidnapping(free space)/ Battle Royale Au  
> Jerejean: /

 

Andrew came to slowly. Painfully. He felt cold and heavy. His vision wasn’t clear. His ears were ringing. He couldn’t remember how he had gotten here. A small bubble of panic seeped into his belly at these realizations. He focused on his eyes, clearing the blur. His hands came up and felt his wrists. They were bare. He swallowed the bile that thought brought up.

 

It was like his body was moving through molasses. He took a century to feel around his neck. Cold metal biting into his skin. He saw a systematic flash of red reflected onto his skin. A collar then. He tried to take in his location, but couldn’t find anything useful. Nothing to tell him where exactly he was. It smelled old. Damp. 

 

He reined in his panic and took a careful walk around the room. It was old and falling apart. He heard water dripping from somewhere.

 

“What the fuck?” His voice was a rough whisper, barely audible but still cacophonous in the empty cavern of wherever he was. There was no answer but his own voice echoing back at him. Andrew grit his teeth and tugged his sleeves down over his hands. At least he had that.

 

He stumbled over the wreckage of the room, making his way towards the dripping water, hoping it led to some way out of this hell hole. He tried to think about how he got here. For the first time ever his mind was a true blank. He couldn’t recall anything. He ignored the ice in his veins as he followed a slip of light. The dripping did lead to the outside, but wherever he was must’ve been buried. He’d need to climb. How annoying.

 

He carefully grabbed hold of the ruins and pulled himself up. His body felt heavier, his muscles twinging and his skin pulling. He’d have to take stock of his body after he got out of this pit, make sure he didn’t have anything worse than scrapes or scratches.  He pulled himself up, up, up toward the light. The smell of old damp lessening as another smell took over. Andrew almost cringed.

 

Underneath the scent of crisp autumn air was the stink of death. Where the hell was he?

 

Once he’d pulled through the small opening, he noticed several things: One: he was still in ruins but no longer underground. Two: he wasn’t alone. 

 

That isn’t to say he was surrounded or he could  _ see  _ people around him. No, that wasn’t the case, but he knew that wherever he was, there were others here. He made his way to a collapsed wall and peeked outside. There was so much nature, like it had decided to kill civilization and take everything back. Andrew could respect that. What he couldn’t was the dark stains the ground held. The walls were splattered and even some low-ground plants were colored with what was undeniably dried blood. 

 

A shout echoed from somewhere. Andrew’s muscles tensed. He didn’t like this one bit. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know where he was. He hoped he was alone. He hoped he wouldn’t see any familiar faces.

 

Andrew knew he wouldn’t be that lucky. 

 

He knew his location wasn’t safe; the old blood spattered on the ground was answer enough for that. He didn’t really want to leave, but knew he had to. He knew at the very least, there was a thicket of trees nearby. He knew that he was small enough to be able to hide there.

 

He listened.

 

He ran.

 

His heart raced.

 

He made himself small. Quiet. He had practice in this, at least. 

 

He didn’t look at his arms.

 

He thought of red hair and ice eyes. Of a face that looked like his. Of a kind smile of a too-nosey cousin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think!


	3. Abandoned Warehouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt wakes up and Andrew is pissed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bingo hits: 
> 
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything." - Abandoned Warehouse- battle royale (free space)  
> Renison: /  
> Andreil: / "What the fuck?"-Kidnapping(free space)- Battle Royale Au-   
> Jerejean: /

 

Matt woke with a buzzing head, a mouth filled with cotton, pain in every muscle he had, and silence. It wasn’t a  _ pure  _ silence,  just not the kind of sound he was used to. It wasn’t the  _ city _ silence, or even  _ town  _ silence. He heard the wind and the sounds that blossomed with it, the leaves skittering across damp ground and scraping rocks. The _ tap tap tap _ of a branch against a solid wall. The  _ drip drip drip _ of water hitting dirt and the squelch of mud it made. 

 

He smelled pure nature and something stronger. Something unsettling. Something he hadn't smelled before, but his stomach turned at the thought of what it  _ might  _ be.

 

He tried to remember how he got where he was. He couldn’t. 

 

_ No no no nononono _ . 

 

He hadn’t blacked out in  _ so long. No _ . this couldn’t be happening. Not again. He had been doing so well. He couldn’t have fallen off the wagon. He was doing  _ so well _ . 

 

He clenched his eyes shut until they hurt. Until he could see stars dancing on his eyelids. He remembered Neil. He remembered Renee and Allison and a bus. He remembered a call from Andrew.

 

His eyes flew open and he looked around. He couldn’t see anything. He stamped down on his panic. No, no he wasn’t blinded or blindfolded. There was light, but it was night time. It was natural. He let his eyes adjust. He could make out the room he was in. Barely. It seemed to be some kind of warehouse….huh. It looked like it’d seen better days. He stood carefully and finally noticed a light blinking from around his neck. He reached up and his hand touched cold metal.

 

He swallowed. _ A collar. _ It had to be.

 

Someone had drugged them and put collars on them? It didn’t make sense.

 

He needed to find his friends. 

 

He hoped he wouldn’t.

 

He hoped they weren’t here .

 

He hoped they were safe. 

 

He wasn’t going to die here.

 

\---

  
  


Andrew wasn’t sure anything would truly be ‘okay’ ever again. He hadn’t even been in this hell for 24 hours and he had already seen some  _ shit _ . Maybe he could count himself  _ lucky  _ he hadn’t seen any familiar faces; he wouldn’t wish this shit on anyone. Or...well that’s not quite true. There’s a handful of people he would wish  _ much, much  _ worse on.

 

Just his Foxes, he wouldn’t wish this on his Foxes. 

 

Ever since he’d woken in this  _ hellhole  _ he’d been trying to learn just where and what the hell was happening. He hadn’t really learned much, other than this being some sort of less advanced Hunger Games. He knew he was being watched. He knew people were dying. He didn’t know much else besides that. Everything was dangerous. Everything was unpredictable. He didn’t know how many people were around, hiding and fighting. He didn’t know if there were going to be more coming. He bet there would be. This seemed like a cycle. He didn’t know how to win.

 

He knew this was a game.

 

There weren’t any rules but to stay alive in any way you can. Andrew could do that. He just wanted to know how to get out. 

 

He wasn’t scared.

 

He was annoyed. 

 

He was pissed. 

 

He didn’t know who had taken him,  _ how _ they’d taken him. He didn’t know why. He didn’t know what he was meant to  _ do.  _

 

_ Survive, _ he guessed. 

 

He never wanted to see a familiar face. He didn’t like the odds of team survival.

 

He’d have to figure it out.


	4. It's been too long

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renee finally wakes, she doesn't what to become Who she was Before

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bingo hits thus far!
> 
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything." - Abandoned Warehouse- battle royale (free space)  
> Renison: /"it's been a long time"- chasing after something- battle royale (free)  
> Andreil: / "What the fuck?"-Kidnapping(free space)- Battle Royale Au-   
> Jerejean: /

 

Renee woke up with a fuzzy head and alert senses. Internal alarms blaring. Her hands reached out. She turned slowly and felt nothing but dirt, leaves, and grass. She was covered mostly by plants. Maybe that was a good thing. She stayed quiet, heard nothing, then sat up. 

 

She was alone. But alone where?

 

She didn’t like this, not at all. She didn’t like the holes in her memory. The uncertainty of what lay ahead. She climbed the nearest tree, needing the high ground.

 

Her nails dug into the bark. She breathed. She tried to recall.

 

She remembered Matt and Neil and Allison. She remembered Andrew’s odd message. She remembered a bus. Her nails dug deeper. She remembered a faint dust and falling, falling, falling.

 

Now she was here. Somewhere. Hopefully alone. Hopefully not. She didn’t want the others to be stuck and afraid here. She didn’t want to be alone here either.

 

She needed to get a grip. She needed to breathe. Her first step should be finding a weapon. There was no way she was safe. She took notice of the collar and the blinking. That meant  _ something.  _

 

It had to be some sort of hunt, so she needed a weapon. There had to be someone or some place around here that had what she needed.

 

A weapon, then clean water, then food, then hopefully shelter. She wasn’t counting on the last one. There was very little chance there’d be a place she felt safe enough to rest her head that wasn’t high, high, high.

 

She took another breath. She didn’t want to do this. She didn’t have a choice. She was glad she had a hood.

 

She pulled it over her head as she got down and began her search. 

 

She moved slowly. Carefully. Her feet careful not to crunch leaves or snap twigs. Surefooted. It was all she had. All she could count on.

  
  


\---

 

It took her hours to find anything worth investigating. It was a building, or had been. It was the shell of a building now. She carefully approached, crouching and pressing close to the wall under a window.

 

She listened, heard nothing, then carefully slipped inside.

 

She didn’t linger there. She searched the overturned, rotten furniture and peeked under piles of litter. She creeped up craggled stairs and hopped over a thick vine. She searched what seemed to be office rooms, and in a desk, she found it.

 

“It’s been too long,” she whispered, hands shaking minutely as she took the knife in her hand. She ran a finger over the blade. Sharp enough to do its job.

 

She pocketed it and stepped back out, walking across the vine, outside and into another tree. She wasn’t going to be caught unawares.

 

Right on time it seemed. She heard voices. Bodies. She maneuvered around the tree to see and not be seen in return. 

 

“I hear they’ve dropped some newbies in on us, prize to the first that gets one,” someone was saying. Renee didn’t recognize their voice. She felt relieved even as her muscles tensed.

 

“I think I saw one. Thought it was a damn mirage but the bitch was slippery.” Another said. Renee hoped it wasn’t one of hers.

 

“Really? What’d they look like? You sure they were new? You know we can’t trust your shitty eyesight, Walker.” Renee’s blood ran cold at her name in his mouth.

 

“Some blond bitch, too clean to be anyone from before. Had a temper and fuckin claws.” Walker paused, seemingly showing the group around him some battle scar. “Couldn’t keep ahold of the slippery thing, but she won’t get away next time. She was real pretty too. Can’t wait to see what a couple days out here’s gonna do to her.”

 

They laughed and Renee felt her gut churn. It had to be Allison. She hoped to God it wasn’t, but she had to assume. She had to get out of here. She had to find this blonde. 

 

She had to find her before they did.

  
  


\---

  
  


Renee had to admit that Walker guy was right. This girl  _ was  _ hard to find. Renee hoped that was a good thing. She prayed and prayed and prayed Day in and day out, carefully hunting down this woman, her heart rapid in her chest. Her brain forming every worst case scenario without pause. Her nerves were frayed. This is all such new territory. Literally. 

 

Her heart skipped when she sees a flash of blonde. 

 

She loses every ounce of her old self for a second: her feet falling in a misplaced rhythm, a twig snapping, her breath coming out in a harsh gasp. She doesn’t catch herself before she spooks the girl.

 

She runs.

 

Renee chases her. Tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth, too dry to form the name.

 

_ Allison. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!!! i've been so busy! I forgot to update this!!! I hope you enjoy!! I would die for some comments!! PLease tell me whtat you like or dont like!


	5. Feathers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neil wakes with a strong resolve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone not reading this lol, jkjkjk sorry for the long update time, i forget a lot plus with nano and the fact my entire family plus myself have been sick since october, Life is...well Hard
> 
> BINGO HITS  
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything." - Abandoned Warehouse- battle royale (free space)- afraid of death- feathers  
> Renison: /"it's been a long time"- chasing after something- battle royale (free)  
> Andreil: / "What the fuck?"-Kidnapping(free space)- Battle Royale Au- weapon of choice  
> Jerejean: /

 

Neil woke in a room surrounded by feathers and the scent of blood. 

 

He gagged and reached for his gun only to feel his fingers scrape against concrete. His heart was beating out of his chest, his vision was quickly turning black once more. He couldn’t breathe.

 

He gasped and scrambled, nails scraping the floor and breaking against the wall. He felt bile rise in his throat.

 

He needed to get out of here. He needed to  _ breathe.  _

 

Neil tried to recall the feeling of Andrew’s hand on the back of his neck. The feeling of his kisses. The way Matt would ruffle his hair or Allison would hook their arms together. He counted them, he spelled their names, he could breathe. 

 

Just enough to get out of this bloody room. He could breathe enough to get out of the foul room.

 

He hoped it was just bird’s blood. He hoped. He ho _ ped. He hoped. _

 

He fell into the grass outside, sucking in mouthfuls of clean air. No blood. No dust. No feathers. 

 

He dug up a fistful of dirt and pushed himself up. His vision was returning to normal. He took in his surroundings and stamped the panic down. He couldn’t lose himself now. It looked like he was alone be he wasn’t stupid enough to believe it. 

 

He  _ felt  _ the presence of other people. He couldn’t say how far they were or how familiar or dangerous, but he could  _ tell _ they were here. Maybe just as stuck as he was. 

 

He needed to find a place to hide.

 

He needed a weapon.

 

He forced his legs to move, muscles aching and stiff from whatever knocked him out, how long he’d been out, and pure unadulterated panic. 

 

His first movements are disjointed, too loud in the natural quiet, making him flinch. He forces a rhythm, lightening his steps and taking deeper breaths. He can do this.

 

____

  
  


Neil was finding out there was a lot of nothing in this place. There were a lot of trees, a lot of bloody spots, but very little cover from the obvious danger. He hadn’t even  _ seen  _ any of this danger and that was only making him more nervous. He was a wreck. Jumbled nerves, frayed and tangled. Neil trusted his instincts, even if they tended to lean towards ‘worst case scenario’. He’d been alive long enough to know there was very little good in the world. There was no good feeling to be had. Not like this, not in a place like this.

 

He knew his friends were here. He wasn’t naive enough to think otherwise. He  _ knew.  _

 

He hoped they were still alive. That Andrew was here and giving everyone hell. He wanted, so desperately, for his people to be alive and okay. He wanted to find them regardless. Alive or dead, no one was going to be left behind here. Not on his watch. Not if he could help it.

 

He ran and ran and ran until he found something resembling a structure. It was small and sunken-looking, like it’d weathered many a storm and was finally bending from the water’s weight. He knew it had to be full of mold. It didn’t deter him, he examined the area for hours. 

 

No one showed. Nothing moved inside.

 

He carefully snuck his way inside. 

 

His heart stuttered. There were people passed out inside, but he couldn’t turn back now. He needed what they had and he needed to check their faces.

 

He crept in, mindful of the potentially creaky wooden floor. He didn’t take a breath. He looked at faces he didn’t recognize, stayed in the shadows, and stole as many goods as he could. A backpack in the corner. A jacket tossed over a broken board. Knives thrown into a makeshift target. The wood was tight and it took a bit of grit for the knives to give. Neils heart stopped at the snap of the wood. 

 

He crouched down and tried to make himself small. His heart was so loud he was sure they were all going to wake and jump him. No one moved. 

 

Neil felt saliva pooling in his mouth, thick and disgusting. He didn’t even want to risk swallowing it. He grabbed another jacket and ran.

 

He ran and ran and ran again until he couldn’t breathe. He ran until he slammed into a tree. He dug his nails in and climbed, holding his stolen goods tight to his chest. 

 

A high keen ripped from his throat. He slapped his hand over his mouth and clenched his eyes shut. 

 

His fingers shook. He traced keys into his palm anyways.

 

Car keys.

 

House keys. 

 

Every key he’d ever had or ever would. 

 

Slowly his hands stopped shaking. His breathing evened out.

 

He had something now. He had a way to defend himself. He had a way to find his Foxes. He pulled his nicked sweater over his head, keeping the hood over his hair as the last of his shaking dissipated. 

 

He eventually turned to look at the backpack. He traced his finger along the zipper before tugging it.

 

It was a lot of nothing.

 

Turns out that even in a life or death situation people were still trash hoarders. He sifted through the garbage for anything potentially useful.

 

He found some uneaten nutrition bars, a bottle of water, a canteen for water, and a lighter. He had room for a lot more. He knew he’d need to find a lot more. He wasn’t going to be picky. Anything useful, anything even  _ potentially  _ useful, he was going to take. 

 

He was going to cheat and steal and kill.

 

He was going to find his Foxes.

 

He was going to find Andrew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think!!!! Im desperate for interaction on this!


	6. Bloodshed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew finds a familiar face

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bingo hits  
> Brosten: "The phone call that changed everything." - Abandoned Warehouse- battle royale (free space)- afraid of death  
> Renison: /"it's been a long time"- chasing after something- battle royale (free)  
> Andreil: / "What the fuck?"-Kidnapping(free space)- Battle Royale Au- weapon of choice- feathers-bloodshed  
> Jerejean: /
> 
> honestly real talk idk anymore, no ones even reading this but Plz, allow me to throw my garbage out to the void it's all i have, someone will like it eventually

 

Andrew was _so_ tired of little shitty shits thinking they could get one over on him because he was small. He was used to being underestimated, used to violence, but the scale was different here. At least as far as he’d experienced, it was violence for the sake of violence.. The people he’d come across didn’t even seem to care about survival. Maybe they’d been here too long and their minds had warped.

 

No matter, he didn’t care.

 

And he proved them wrong.

 

The last fight had taken something out of him though.

 

It seemed he had found his way to the hot-zone. He’d come across three groups now. 3-3-2. It was the last group, the pair, that had put up the most fight.

 

The first made his skin crawl. They wanted him alive for some sick purpose. He’d dealt with that enough and they didn’t last long. He knew the weak spots of those types of pig.

 

The second group fought because they loved it. They liked to drag it out, make it hurt and make their target bleed. They boasted about how pretty blood painted and how much they could get with the right cuts.

 

Too bad for them Andrew didn’t like to play.

 

The third group though, they’d been fighting for survival with a misplaced sense of danger. It was warped. Everyone was a target.

 

He knew what that was like.

 

Unfortunately for him, he hadn’t any weapons. The groups before didn’t have anything useful and what they did they’d been sure to destroy before he could get his hands on it, sticking it in something too much for him to pull. Not even he was strong enough to pull a bent crowbar wedged halfway through a thick trunk. He’d lost the clever nail knuckles in the face of one of the last three and they’d had nothing but ropes and wire.

 

He used his own nails. His fists.

 

In the end it was his teeth. He couldn’t shake the feeling of his canines sinking into a jugular, the feeling of blood gushing into his mouth and down his body. He was still covered in it.

 

Stained.

 

He hadn’t had any luck finding a water source he was comfortable cleaning in. Nothing was safe. Nowhere. He felt more manic than he had in a long time. He hadn’t stopped moving.

 

He was tired.

 

He tried once more to wipe the dried blood from his face. It just felt sticky.

 

His stomach roiled.

 

At least he’d amassed a good amount of goods. The last person he’d fought had a knife. At least now he wasn’t defenseless.

 

Not like he ever was, but it was better than his fists or nails. Than his teeth.

 

_No, no don’t think of that._

 

He shook his head and kept moving.

 

Night was falling when his luck shifted.

 

Oh, he must be _really_ gone if he considered this a favorable shift.

 

A body slammed into him full force. They both toppled down, down, down a hill.

 

Andrew’s instincts screeched, telling him to reach out.

 

He did. He dug his fingers deep into the earth, his other hand grabbing the back of the person’s shirt.

 

He heard them yell, startled and afraid. They thrashed.

 

“Do you want to die?” he asked, barely heard over her struggling. They’d stopped moving at least.

 

His fingers hurt.

 

The woman stilled at his voice and turned to look at him. He paused.

 

“Andrew!?”

 

“Allison...what are you doing here.” It didn’t sound like a question. He stamped down the flicker of what might have been happiness at a familiar, non-threatening face.

 

She looked like she’d been through the mill--cuts on her face, her messy hair littered with leaves. Her clothes were torn and spotted with blood.

 

“Looking for you! What the hell happened to you?!” she was shouting. Andrew didn’t like that.

 

He covered her mouth with a hand. She started to struggle but froze as she heard the footsteps. Andrew could see the fear in her eyes. He grit his teeth and dragged her close, under an outcropping.

 

They were tense beside each other, Andrew kept his hand over her mouth.

 

They listened to the newcomers. They sounded angry. They set off Andrew’s alarms. They were like wolves, and they made it very clear exactly why they were following Allison.

 

“I could’ve sworn i’d seen her come this way.” Wolf 1 said, impatient and angry.

 

The other sighed. “She fell down the fuckin cliff asshole, you spooked her. We could’ve all had her tonight if you hadn’t been so goddamn greedy.”

 

Andrew wanted to gut him.

 

They talked a while. The earth shifted around them as the wolves leaned over and deemed it too dangerous to go down for her body. They didn’t want to die after all.

 

Andrew was going to kill them himself. After he heard their retreat, he finally took his hand from Allison’s mouth. She grabbed it back. Tight. Like a lifeline.

 

“We can’t stay here.”

 

“I can’t move.” Her voice was softer than he’d ever heard it.

 

He let her keep hold of his hand as he turned to her. Caught her eyes in his. “I will not let them touch you.”

 

She didn’t say anything for a long while. Andrew didn’t break eye contact.

 

“I’m not one of yours.” Still a whisper.

 

“Out here you are.” She didn’t seem to believe him. “You are the only Fox I’ve seen. I didn’t want to see you. I didn’t want to see _any_ of you. But here you are. You found me and I found you and I will _not let anyone touch you.”_

 

She released a breath. It shook on its way out. Her eyes were glassy and he finally looked away. She let go of his hand.

 

“Where are we going?”

 

“Downhill.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you know I have 15 chapters of this ready to post right this minute but im at a cliffhanger myself and im just *shocked pikachu* everytime i look at what i have written last
> 
> Anyways please enjoy and tell me what you think!


	7. Do it, I dare you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> an unfortunate run in brings Allison and Andrew closer to their understanding of each other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY so it's been a hot minute huh!? i thought i would abandon this tbh, its still bingo hits but i doubt that matters anymore, ill round em out at the end so you see what i managed to throw in here, you know, if i make it to the end lol

 

Allison couldn’t believe she had ran into the mons- Andrew. She couldn’t believe he was really here. Logic told her that meant the others were too, but she was too damn relieved to worry. He had saved her. She believed him when he said he’d protect her, that she was his in this hellhole. 

 

It was the safest she’d felt since she woke. 

 

It had taken no time at all for her to lose any weapon or advantage she had. Just within an hour of waking she had lost 4 nails into a man’s face and broken a heel into another's throat. 

 

Between running for her life and scratching the hell out of the men chasing her, she was barefoot, nailless and more than a little rumpled. She couldn’t even imagine how much of a mess she looked. 

 

She could barely bring herself to care.

 

At the very least she wanted the leaves out of her hair.

 

At least she didn’t look like Andrew. Half wild and dangerous.

 

Maybe she  _ should  _ look more like him. 

 

They scaled down the hill they were on, down to a beach Andrew seemed to detest. It was rocky and dangerous and perfect. There was a small shack along the coast, almost in a cove. She could have called it a fishing supply storage area if there was anything around that indicated that’s what it was other than the sea. It had been long since ransacked and the marker for many a death if its pungent odor was any indicator. 

 

But there was an old bench and moth eaten blankets and Allison hadn’t been happier to see either of those things before in her life. 

 

Andrew checked the area while Allison checked out her aching feet. They were disgusting. Muddy and covered in blood. If she made it out of this, she’d really need to get every shot known to man. 

 

She didn’t even notice Andrew coming back until he had gotten on his knees in front of her and held out a hand. It took her a moment to realize what he wanted.

 

She carefully settled her leg in his hand. He didn’t hesitate to clean her foot. It burned a bit. He must have gathered some sea water and cleaned his face. He looked a little less wild. 

 

He meticulously cleaned her foot with a bit of the blanket he’d torn off a chunk to make a rag. Like this, she could really appreciate and see what Neil saw in him.

 

He cleaned her feet, one then the other, wrapping them in an old, cleanish shirt he must have found around this fucking island. 

 

Then he slipped a pair of soft boots onto her feet. They were big but she didn’t even care.

 

She almost cried again. “Thank you…” 

 

Andrew just looked up at her and shrugged before taking refuge in a corner of the room.

 

Luckily, there were no windows. Just the door, and they both had their eyes on it.

 

“Sleep. I’ll wake you if we need to move or the sun rises.” 

 

She wanted to protest. She knew he hadn’t rested since he’d arrived either. But she wasn’t as used to this kind of life. She felt a stone in her gut when she realized Andrew was used to being alert and tired--that he had grown used to it so long ago.

 

She would take over in a couple hours. He deserved rest.

 

He deserved a lot more than she had ever bothered to think about before. 

  
  


____

  
  


Andrew waited until Allison was well and truly asleep before risking even  _ thinking  _ about changing his shirt. It was wet and sticking to him, still bloody and annoying. He had other, less disgusting things, but he didn’t want to feel the vulnerability. Not even for a second. The possibility of Allison waking and seeing him change or an ambush in the moment his attention wasn't on the door. 

 

Bee’s voice came to him, of course. Telling him there wasn’t anything wrong with being vulnerable. Not around the right people. Andrew couldn’t help thinking,  _ the Foxes are the right people.  _

 

He changed his shirt.

 

Nothing bad happened. 

 

He finally felt himself breathe. It felt like the first breath he’d ever taken. 

 

Allison slept through the night. Andrew barely blinked. She woke an hour or two after sunrise and demanded he rest too.

 

For once, he didn’t fight her.

 

He didn’t sleep necessarily. He’d go as far as calling it a  _ doze _ . Allison didn’t make a sound, didn’t startle him once.

 

He was…..grateful. Grateful to have found her. Grateful to not be alone anymore. 

  
  


___

  
  


Allison wanted to do something nice for him. She didn’t know what to do or how to do it, especially not with waking him from his hard earned rest. She wasn’t tense, she wasn’t afraid but she didn’t want to disturb him.

 

Maybe rest is the best gift she can give him.

 

A sense of safety enough to actually close his eyes and leave some tension behind.

 

She stayed a silent sentinel for who knows how long. She couldn’t tell time from the sun. there were no windows. All she could hear was the crashing of the waves outside. 

 

_ I wonder if we could fish _ , she thought. That would be sustainable, right? 

 

She could just see the tiny Minyard launching himself into the sea and stabbing fish. He’d be victorious and soaked and proud but only in his eyes and only if you knew how to find it. Neil wouldn’t even have to try.

 

With their luck these weren’t fishable waters. Or had already been overfished. Or the fish were too smart, and were too far out for them to catch.

 

She frowned, then looked to her carefully covered feet and frowned some more. 

 

She’d pay him back for this. Somehow. 

 

She almost laughed. She never thought she’d become fond of the monster. Never thought she’d rather refer to his name than that old nickname.

 

All because he was in the right place at the right time. 

 

“You’re thinking too loud,” Andrew’s voice was quiet, and she couldn’t help but laugh.

 

“Did I wake you from your beauty sleep?” She asked, voice more teasing than she’d ever directed at him before.

 

He just opened his eyes and gave her a glare. 

 

There was no heat in it.

 

She laughed again.

 

Andrew closed some of the distance between them, and they shared a frankly pitiful meal together.

 

She shared her idea of fishing, he shrugged and said it was worth looking in to.

 

They sat in silence for a long while after that.

 

In the end she had to break it, she had to ask what they were both thinking, “Do you think the others are here too?”

 

Andrew looked to her. She didn’t back down from his gaze.

 

“Yes.” Was all he said.

 

She nodded, “I wish they weren’t.” 

 

Andrew didn’t say anything, but she knew he felt the same. After his admission last night, she knew the last thing Andrew wanted was to see any of them.

 

At least not here. Not like this.

 

They spent another uncertain amount of time sorting through the goods Andrew had collected. Allison had very little to contribute, she’d had to keep on the move. There wasn’t much time to collect anything like that. All she could get was a jacket. Andrew just kept frowning at her legs.

 

She couldn’t really blame him. Shorts were cute but not as jungle wear. 

 

“Didn’t think i’d need to steal someone’s pants.” 

 

She looked at her reddened thighs and battered calves and shrugged. She slapped the tops of her thighs, “I’m high maintenance, even out here I need an outfit change.”

 

Andrew rolled his eyes, “Of course.” 

 

They fashioned some makeshift thigh covers from the rest of the ratty old blanket. Better than chafing her skin off.

 

That meant they needed to leave now. Allison’s heart picked up. Andrew didn’t show any discomfort and just shouldered his bag once more.

 

He opened the door a crack and peeked outside for several long minutes, then carefully slid out. Allison would never get over the amount of strength held in his tiny body. What was once a source of fear was now just awe to her. 

 

Any ease Allison had seen in Andrew’s body was gone the moment he opened the door. She couldn’t blame him, once it opened it felt like a bubble of safety had been burst and they were on their own once again.

 

At least they had a plan now. 

 

They had to find their friends. Allison knew who they were looking for, but Andrew knew the layout. They trusted Renee to keep herself safe.

 

The only one they felt they really needed to find was Matt. 

 

Neil would be safe. Andrew trusted him, Allison trusted Andrew’s judgement.

 

Matt was who they had to find.

  
  


___

  
  


They were found first. Allison knew why Neil only wanted to run, before. It’s all her instincts told her to do.

 

Andrew saw them before she did. His posture tensed and he stepped in front of her.

 

Then she saw the men she had been running from.

 

_ She wanted to run. _

 

She stayed still, her eyes hard in the face of these men that crooned at her.

 

“Hey there darlin’” now she wanted to punch him.

 

“Find yourself a little savior huh? Can’t protect yourself?” 

 

Andrew must’ve given a pointed look to the scratch marks all down the man’s face and arms, “Seem’s she can do well enough.” 

 

The man scoffed and crossed his arms, “It was a lucky strike, it was her first and last.”

 

“Like you think you can do any better you tiny fuck?” The other man snarled, a smirk twisting his face into something ugly. 

 

“We’re takin’ her with us.” 

 

“Do it, I dare you.”

 

Andrew was ready for their fight.

 

Allison was ready to watch his back.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me know what you think! Sorry for the long wait if anyones even subbed to this lol or cares to know BUT ALAS here it is folks!


	8. Don't be afraid of Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt finds a group, but are they willing to take him? Is he willing to do what he needs to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> have a double upload! (unbeta'd like most of my stuff is)

Matt might have been delirious. Paranoid. But he was still alive and hadn’t encountered any other breathing human beings. 

 

He also hadn’t encountered any source of calm or food or water. He honestly didn’t know how he was alive.

 

_ No, no don’t think that.  _ Matt didn’t want to die. He wanted to make it out of this. 

 

He kept wandering in the forest, squatting in barely-there structures. He jumped right out of his skin at every sound the forest made. The birds, the wind. Even sounds his brain made up, sounds he thought he heard.

 

His friend’s voices or footsteps. Whispering.

 

He was sweating and shaking.

 

He didn’t want to die. 

  
  


___

  
  


Of course his good luck couldn’t last for long. (could it really be called good?)

 

He was delirious and ignoring plain signs of life. 

 

He stumbled right in to some group’s camp.

 

Maybe he was lucky.

 

They didn’t kill him on sight.

 

He didn’t stay conscious long enough to answer their “Who the hell are you!?” 

 

If he woke up dead, oh well.

  
  


___

  
  


He woke to a face he didn’t recognize and feeling more like death than he ever had before.

 

That might be an exaggeration.

 

“Are you alive?” the face asked. Huh, he had an accent?  _ Was  _ Matt dead?

 

He tried to answer but all that came out was a half-wheezed groan.

 

Mr. Accent Face rolled his eyes and  forced Matt to sit up. Then helped him drink. 

 

He still didn’t feel  _ great  _ but damn did he feel a world better than he did before.  Mr. Accent didn’t let him overdo it. Matt would’ve gladly drowned at that moment if it meant he got to  _ drink.  _

 

“Thank you,” he gasped out. Mr. Accent didn’t look impressed. 

 

“You are a fool,” he said. Matt agreed, yes, yes he was a fool. “Where did you come from, who are you, who are you with?” 

 

It didn’t really sound like a question, Matt would say it was much more a demand. He answered anyways, “I….i’ve just been wandering. My name’s Matt and im not with anyone…”

 

The Accent Man just grunted, “That sounds like a lie.” 

 

“I wish it was, but it’s just a sad truth..i’ve been alone since I woke up here.” 

 

The man just grunted again. “Stay,” he says before leaving Matt to himself once more.

 

Or as alone as one can be when they’re a prisoner. There’s at least a half dozen pairs of eyes staring at him. He tries to not think of that.

 

He watches Mr. Accent instead. He watches him approach a smaller man. Smaller but somehow much more intimidating. 

 

Mr. Accent makes himself very small, somehow when talking to Mr. Eyes. Matt watches with interest as Accent makes a small gesture toward him, then Eyes looks to him. 

 

They talk about something. Eyes looks a little smug. Maybe. Then he nods and Accent makes his way back to Matt.

 

“You’re lucky,” Accent says, “he says you can stay. But you have to make yourself useful.”

 

Matt feels himself perk up as he nods, “Yes! Yes of course! I’ll help! I’ll do whatever you all say.” 

 

Accent hisses at him and gives him a sharp look, “Shut up, don’t say that so loud.” 

 

Matt’s confused, but nods once more. Much smaller. “Okay, alright i’m sorry. I...can I know your name?” 

 

Accent stares at him. His eyes stormy and grey and distrustful. He sighs, “Jean, my name is Jean.” 

 

At least Matt wasn’t likely to die.

 

So long as he was useful.

  
  


___

  
  


Matt was a big guy. Taller than Jean, broader. He could intimidate with looks alone when he wasn’t marinated in fear and panic and delusion. 

 

Riko’s group seemed to have intimidation down to an art. Cruelty too, but Matt was beginning to understand just how necessary that was. 

 

It didn’t take any time at all for him to become ‘invaluable’. He couldn’t seem to shake Jean’s concerned glance. 

 

_ I wonder what that’s all about,  _ he thought to himself.

 

He knew if he asked Jean wouldn’t say anything. He seemed so afraid.

 

What did he have to be afraid of? His group was a pinnacle of power and strength. No one wanted to mess with them. It was almost like a hierarchy. Riko and his had any other group bow to them. 

 

Riko was a king. 

 

Matt could respect that. 

 

He would happily be a knight on this king’s court if it kept him alive.

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> even writing this made me nervous ok, my sweet summer child with them and thinking theyre _good_ guys, or at least something like it.

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE let me know what yall think! ive got...a lot planned


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